Since the advent of solid state electronics, manufacturers of railroad transportation technology have sought to convert locomotive control systems from conventional mechanical apparatus to more modern electronic componentry. Part of the rationale for preferring electronic systems over their mechanical counterparts involves factors that one typically associates with computerization. Faster control of critical systems and elimination of bulky mechanical hardware to decrease weight and increase available space are two such factors. Reliability and greater operational efficiency are prime examples of two other such factors. Market forces including the need to keep up with business competitors are also important factors for companies engaged in the development of such computerized locomotive control systems.
Electronic locomotive control systems of varying sophistication and complexity have been developed in recent years. The electronics within these control systems perform the basic functions requisite to the control of a locomotive more efficiently than the old mechanical relay based systems of years past. Computerized locomotive control systems now control engine propulsion, dynamic braking and pneumatic braking to name a few such functions. These electronic control systems may also be interconnected with other systems such as wheel slip and slide detection circuitry. Such features further enhance the performance of railroad locomotives and make such computerized systems even more attractive to customers of railroad equipment manufacturers.
These advances in railroad transportation technology have served to accelerate further the drive toward gleaning more and more utility from such computer controlled systems. The customers of railroad equipment manufacturers such as freight and passenger transit services expect electronic locomotive control systems that perform an ever increasing number of tasks and that do so automatically. Customers often specifically request that certain functions, previously performed manually, be automated by either modifying existing computer systems or employing new function specific electronic hardware or a combination of both. Automatically determining position of a rail vehicle within a train consist is one such function that may be implemented using either entirely new equipment or a combination of new and existing equipment via the present system and method.
A train consist routinely stops frequently to add and remove railroad cars so as to pick-up and deliver various goods for shipment. A train operator therefore has to maneuver the train consist alongside siding railroad tracks to allow coupling and uncoupling of railroad cars as other railroad cars are added and removed. Quite often the train operator also has to position particular railroad cars adjacent railside platforms to allow loading or unloading of goods intended for shipment on specially equipped railroad cars. For train consists of moderate to long length, especially freight trains which often extend a mile or more in length, it proves quite a tedious and time consuming task to determine the exact location of a particular railroad car within the train consist.
The present invention, however, automatically and quickly informs the train operator of the exact order of vehicles within the train consist. The present system saves time and labor that otherwise would be expended in pinpointing the position of a particular railroad car using other more time consuming ways of ascertaining railroad car position. The present system also eliminates the possibility of error in determining railroad car position as compared to using a human to determine same. Though perhaps a luxury on train consists of very short length, on moderate to long train consists, especially those long freight trains, the present system constitutes an advance over previous practice.
The present system and method may be realized in part by taking advantage of certain components commonly found on today's more modern train consists. A typical train consist includes at least one locomotive, one or more rail vehicles and a plurality of trainlines. The trainlines include both pneumatic and electrical lines generally running from a head of train locomotive to a last rail vehicle in the train and connecting to air brakes and electrical devices, respectively, in each rail vehicle situated therebetween. Specifically, in a locomotive, the pneumatic trainlines include an actuating pipe, a main reservoir equalizing (MER) pipe, and an independent application and release (IAR) pipe. Within a locomotive consist (i.e., two or more locomotives interconnected to haul heavy loads), each of the MER, actuating and IAR pipes respectively interconnect with the MER, actuating and IAR pipes of the other locomotives. The pneumatic trainlines also include a brake pipe. The brake pipe consists of a series of pipe lengths one of which secured to the underside of each rail vehicle and interconnected to another such pipe length via a flexible coupler situated between each rail vehicle. The brake pipe is thus one long continuous pipe running from the head of train locomotive to the last rail vehicle.
Sometimes referred to in the singular as a trainline or a trainline cable, the electrical trainlines (i.e., wires) include a power line and a return line which, along with other electrical lines, are contained within a protective conduit or cable. As with the brake pipe, the electrical trainlines actually constitute a series of individual conduits one of which usually secured to the underside of each rail vehicle and interconnected via a connector situated between each rail vehicle. The power line supplies power from the head of train locomotive to each of the railroad vehicles within the train consist. The return line likewise supplies a path for completing electrical circuits supplied by the power line. For the sake of clarity, the reader is advised that hereinafter all references to the term "trainline" denote "electrical trainline" and not "pneumatic trainline" unless otherwise specifically noted.
The head of train locomotive is typically equipped with one or more computerized systems, a cab keyboard for accessing at least one of such preexisting computerized systems, and a cab display for monitoring train operation. One example of such preexisting computerized systems is the EPIC.RTM. Computer Controlled Brake Equipment Produced by the Westinghouse Air Brake Company (WABCO). The EPIC.RTM. Brake Control Equipment controls the operation of the brakes for all the railroad vehicles within a train consist. Another example of such preexisting computerized systems is the Cab Integration Equipment in the locomotive which, simply stated, controls the overall operation of a train consist.
The present system and method may be implemented using either componentry dedicated solely to the present invention or a combination of new and existing equipment such as the locomotive computer and the trainlines alluded to above. The latter alternative is a preferred means for carrying out the present invention, though the former alternative is equally efficacious. This will become apparent from the following detailed description and claims.